Retiring CIA agent Burt Lancaster is targeted for death by his own operatives for treason (seems he's been involved in some dirty dealings with Russian forces on the side); his assigned assassin, nicknamed "Scorpio", is the younger man whom Lancaster's been training to replace him, so he finds a workable partner in the trainee's girlfriend to form a defensive strategy. Handsome Michael Winner film, though not an exciting one. The drama feels like hollowed-out melodrama, with so many camera set-ups and crisscrossing action that it quickly becomes tedious in place of suspenseful. Jerry Fielding's score is lively, and the film is certainly intelligent and well-produced, but there isn't a soul here to sympathize with. *1/2 from ****
Review of Scorpio
